An old before and after.....

I am not trying to brag...but this weekend in Atlanta was gorgeous. Every stinkin minute! AND....for once I was very productive.

I bought one of these

Picture is a little blurry but it is called the Cleanforce Pressure Washer 1800 PSI. This puppy can clean. I wanted to wash my patio furniture and not by hand.

Now it is not as strong as the 2500 PSI power washer that I borrowed from my neighbor last year. Which is OK...cause that thing is dangerous. I accidentally ran it over my foot and almost amputated it. I still have the scar.

Which hurt like the dickens. My husband asked why I did that. "I don't know honey thought I would use my foot to see how powerful it was".

Anyway.....this will do the job in 1/2 the time of your two hands. Even the cushions that were FILTHY came out perfect.

So get to it!

I was cleaning up my iphoto files this weekend and ran across this bedroom before and after. It is not much but I think once more it proves the impact of the power of paint and neutral bedding........

Before

This client has traveled extensively. In fact her daughter lives in Tanzania, Africa so she had some things she wanted to incorporate in the room. Plus....we had to keep the bed and dresser.

Now mind you this was 5 years ago.......We tried to hide the headboard the best we could. The lamps came from Homegoods, which were awesome. I have been disappointed with their selection lately. We did change out the end tables. The foot stools [yes I know, snicker.....we could not paint] were covered in this clothe that she had gotten from Africa. Wish I had begged...they would have looked good painted black! If you want to see where the foot stools were before go here. Same house...master bedroom.

The rug is just a neutral piece of cut yardage.

All the bedding is ready made except for the pillows.

Here is another angle of the room.

I believe these were taken before accessorizing cause that table looks quite sad........but these Pier One chairshelped give the area some height. They still carry this style and I have used them so many times......they are comfy and cheap!

The bathroom before. Everything was that 80's shinny brass. Remember this was 5 years ago and brass HAD NOT come back yet. I still would have changed it because it looked so dated.

This is the before of the sink and vanity

We had the tile all re-grouted....painted the vanity, the walls....[like you can't tell]......Cesarstone for the countertop and a Kohler undermount sink. Also Kohler fixtures. We did change out the light fixture also but of course I can not find a picture of it anywhere. Also, not pictured, was the fact that we changed out the shower plumbing, and added a frameless shower door.

I wish I had more and better pictures....but this was my pre-blogging days. Even after 5 years...I see so many things I might have done differently.....but I think we put the money in the most important areas...like the bath and paint.

Still, you can get the idea about keeping the changes neutral.......They were thinking of downsizing in a few years.

I need to redo my crappy master bath. I've put it off for 5 (yes 5) years thinking $30k was going to show up in my bank account and I could do a real overhaul. You know, why waste a couple hours painting and taking down weird plant hangers (for real) when you're going to rip it all out in 20 years anyway. Might as well live with an eyesore.

I need a power washer! I did not know that until I just read this post. Sherika- helping people spend their money since 2010. XOXO

Yes, I too have a pressure washer!!! It's amazing how clean you can get things with one of those babies. I was just looking at my patio the other day thinking I need to get going with it, but snowflakes were in the air!!! Nothing like your gorgeous sunshine. Send some up my way!!!

Well, it may have been 5 years ago but the things you picked are kind of timeless. It is too bad you didn't have more before/after shots. Who knew what blogging would demand of us when we work on projects?;>) xo Diana

Sherry, would you consider moving to MA for a while? I LOVE everything you do and your sense of humor can't be beat! If you move I will provide free room and board and wine for your services!!Pretty please, consider my plea!!!!Denise

I love this before and after. Even though the furniture stayed the same finish, it looks so much better against the new lighter wall color. It's amazing what paint can do! :) I definitely have a big to do list for spring cleaning! I've got to get to it!

This is a great example of a "real" makeover. Sometimes it just isn't feasible to replace everything in a room, but your post shows that if you are creative and work with what you have, you can still have a terrific result.

Wow! Amazing this was five years ago!! Great job ! if you could have done all you wanted to do would have been even better!! I had to laugh about the power washer. I bought one that ate the mortar out of the brick on my front porch! After I used it, my arms shook all night long!!!